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North and South Korea to hold third peace summit in Pyongyang

North Korea's Kim Jong Un and his counterpart from the South, Moon Jae In, will hold talks for a third time next month. The upcoming meeting comes amid doubts that the North will fulfill its pledge to denuclearize.

Envoys from North and South Korea announced on Monday they had reached agreement to hold the upcoming peace summit in the North's capital of Pyongyang next month.

It will mark the third meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in.

Officials from both sides reached an agreement at the truce village of Panmunjom, located in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) that separates the two Koreas.

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Korea: Hope for a divided country

Korea: Hope for a divided country

While no date or an agenda for the upcoming talks were formally announced, the two sides are widely expected to discuss a potential peace declaration and the possibility of launching a series of joint economic and infrastructure projects that could go ahead once sanctions on Pyongyang are lifted.

South Korea is also expected to push its northern neighbor to accelerate the dismantling of its nuclear weapons program. North Korea and the United States have struggled to agree on how to proceed with denuclearizing the peninsula after Kim vowed to disarm during a landmark meeting with US President Donald Trump in Singapore in June.

Summit details thin

Following Monday's talks, delegates from both sides said in a statement: "We reviewed the implementation situations of the Panmunjom Declaration (which calls for a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean war and sees the North pledge to denuclearize) and held consultations in a sincere manner on matters related to its more active enforcement."

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Economic cooperation could be key to Korean rapprochement

Economic cooperation could be key to Korean rapprochement

September's talks will mark the third meeting between Kim and Moon. The two leaders met for the first time in April where they signed the Panmunjom Declaration. The pair met again in May ahead of Kim's Singapore summit with Trump.

The head of the North Korean delegation, Ri Son Gwon, told reporters following the talks that officials agreed on a specific date for the Pyongyang summit, but refused to disclose the date.

A spokesman of South Korea's presidential office said it would be difficult for the summit to take place earlier than September 9, when North Korea celebrates the anniversary of its founding.

The nuclear issue has been one of several ongoing points of contention between the Koreas. Both sides have indicated they want to sign a declaration formally ending the Korea War; however the US has said it would only be privy to such a deal once the North has completely abandoned its nuclear weapons program.

Another sticking point is the case of a dozen North Korea restaurant workers who arrived in the South via China in 2016. Pyongyang maintains that the workers were abducted and has even hinted that the issue could obstruct the future reunion of families separated between the two Koreas.

South Korean Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon declined to say whether the case of the restaurant workers had come up on Monday, merely stating that Pyongyang's negotiation team had not brought up new issues. "There were mentions that if there are problems to be resolved by both sides, on humanitarian issues or for the development of inter-Korean relations, we should do it," Cho told reporters.

North Korea: Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un's nuclear saga

January 2, 2017: Missile test imminent

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said in his New Year’s address that his country was in the "final stages" of launching an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). US President-elect Donald Trump, whose inauguration was set for January 20, said on Twitter: "North Korea just stated that it is in the final stages of developing a nuclear weapon capable of reaching parts of the US. It won't happen!"

North Korea: Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un's nuclear saga

July 4, 2017: North Korea's 'gift packages'

North Korea tested its first ICBM — the Hwasong-14 — on US Independence Day. Kim reportedly told his scientists that "the US would be displeased" by the launch. This, he said, was because "it was given a 'package of gifts' ... on its 'Independence Day.'" Trump wrote on Twitter in response: "North Korea has just launched another missile. Does this guy have anything better to do with his life?"

North Korea: Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un's nuclear saga

July 28, 2017: US mainland threatened

Pyongyang tested its second Hwasong-14 weeks later. Experts estimated the new rocket could reach the US mainland. Trump lashed out at North Korean ally China, writing in a Tweet: "I am very disappointed in China. Our foolish past leaders have allowed them to make hundreds of billions of dollars a year in trade, yet they do NOTHING for us with North Korea, just talk."

North Korea: Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un's nuclear saga

August 8, 2017: 'Fire and fury'

Trump appeared to threaten swift military action against Pyongyang when he told reporters: "North Korea best not make any more threats to the United States. They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen." North Korea responded by threatening to fire a medium-range ballistic missile into the waters around Guam, a US territory in the Pacific Ocean. It did not follow through.

North Korea: Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un's nuclear saga

August 29, 2017: Japan rocket test

Pyongyang sparked international outcry when it test-launched a mid-range ballistic missile — the Hwasong-12 — over Japan. The UN Security Council unanimously condemned the test. Trump said in a White House statement: "Threatening and destabilizing actions only increase the North Korean regime’s isolation in the region and among all nations of the world. All options are on the table."

North Korea: Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un's nuclear saga

September 3, 2017: Hydrogen bomb test

North Korea announced it had successfully tested its sixth nuclear weapon. Pyongyang said it was a powerful type of nuclear weapon called a hydrogen bomb and that it could be placed on top of a ballistic missile. Trump wrote on Twitter: "The United States is considering, in addition to other options, stopping all trade with any country doing business with North Korea."

North Korea: Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un's nuclear saga

September 19, 2017: Threat to 'Rocket Man'

In his first speech at the United Nations, Trump called North Korea a "rogue state" and said Washington "will have no choice than to totally destroy North Korea" if Pyongyang failed to stop its nuclear weapons program. Referring to Kim, he added: "Rocket man is on a suicide mission for himself and his regime." Kim called Trump a "mentally-deranged US dotard" two days later.

North Korea: Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un's nuclear saga

November 29, 2017: Third ICBM test

North Korea test-fired its third ICBM of 2017. Pyongyang claimed it was a new missile, the Hwasong-15, which was superior to the Hwasong-14 and could hit any target on the US mainland. The US urged allies, including Germany, to break diplomatic ties with North Korea. Berlin ignored the call. Trump also called Kim a "sick puppy."

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January 3, 2018: Who's got the bigger button?

Kim said in his 2018 New Year's address that the North had completed its nuclear weapons program and that a "nuclear button" was on his desk at all times. Trump wrote two days later on Twitter: "Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!"

North Korea: Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un's nuclear saga

February 10, 2018: Tensions thawing?

South Korean President Moon Jae-in welcomed Kim's sister, Kim Yo Jong, at the presidential house in the South Korean capital. She handed a letter to Moon inviting him to meet the North Korean leader in Pyongyang. Tensions appeared to be thawing. Seoul and Pyongyang had already agreed to send a unified hockey team to compete at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

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March 6, 2018: Momentum builds

South Korean National Security Adviser Chung Eui-yong led a delegation on March 5 to Pyongyang to discuss the potential for peace talks. The next day, Chung said both sides had agreed to hold a joint summit in April and set up a telephone hotline between the two capitals. He also said Pyongyang would agree to stop its nuclear weapons and missile tests if the US agreed to hold talks with the North.

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March 9, 2018: Trump agrees

Chung flew on to Washington, D.C. to speak with Trump. After the meeting, Chung told reporters the US president had agreed to meet Kim by May. Trump later wrote on Twitter: "no missile testing by North Korea during this period of time. Great progress being made but sanctions will remain until an agreement is reached. Meeting being planned!" Foreign leaders welcomed the historic breakthrough.

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April 19, 2018: 'Denuclearization'

A week before the scheduled meeting at the border between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Moon said North Korea wanted "an end to the hostile relations" and had expressed a commitment to "complete denuclearization" of the peninsula. The next day, the telephone hotline was connected for the first time since February 2016, so Moon and Kim could talk directly.

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April 21, 2018: Kim ends missile tests

Kim announced North Korea would stop nuclear and missile tests. Kim said: "We no longer need any nuclear test or test launches of intermediate and intercontinental range ballistic missiles, and because of this the northern nuclear test site has finished its mission." However, no mention was made of its stored nuclear materials and equipment.

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April 27, 2018: Historic summit

Kim and Moon Jae-in meet in the border town of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that has divided the two Koreas since the Korean War in 1953. The two leaders vowed to work towards a nuclear-free Korea and pledged an end to war. It was the first time a North Korean leader had set foot across the border since the 1950s and paves the diplomatic way for a Trump-Kim meeting in May or June.

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April 30, 2018: Seoul turns off broadcasts

South Korea announces its propaganda loudspeakers are to be switched off for good. They had been silenced temporarily ahead of the inter-Korean summit, which prompted the North to halt its broadcasts, too. Pyongyang also said it would adjust its time zone to that of the South as a symbolic gesture. North Korea has been half an hour behind the South since 2015.

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May 24, 2018: Trump calls off Kim summit

After North Korea slammed US Vice President Mike Pence for comparing North Korea and Libya, Donald Trump abruptly canceled the summit. Trump said the move was due to "tremendous anger and open hostility" displayed by Pyongyang.

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June 1, 2018: Trump backtracks

A day after scrapping the summit, Trump suggested he was still open to meeting Kim. US and North Korean officials met during the following week and on June 1, Trump met one of Kim's closest aides, Kim Yong Chol, in the White House. Shortly thereafter, Trump said the summit would indeed take place on June 12 in Singapore. "I think you're going to have a very positive result in the end," he said.

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June 12, 2018: Smiles in Singapore

Trump and Kim met in Singapore as planned. They smiled, shook hands and praised how far they had come in overcoming their previous animosity. The summit ended with both leaders signing a short joint declaration that committed Pyongyang to denuclearize and the US to providing unspecified "security guarantees" to the North. Trump also said he would invite Kim to the White House.